The True Nature of Descent
I realized the truth in the haze between sleep and waking: Descent does not manipulate souls. I only learned this long after Oh Ji-o’s Descent.
“So you were trying to summon a dead version of yourself?”
“Huh?”
“And the parallel-world you that descended this time—was he already dead?”
“…Now that you mention it, I have zero memories from the moment I died.”
“Exactly.”
It was a simple enough truth. Had he pulled a dead me from the future to gain knowledge? Or had he ripped the soul from a living body? Neither.
That didn’t mean Descent was incapable of handling souls. It clearly possessed spiritual senses and power. Some ancestors had even specialized in that aspect and reached the pinnacle of necromancy. Yet, like every other unique ability, that was not the whole story. If the power were merely about enslaving souls and forcing possession, black mages could already do the same.
What Descent truly governed was not the soul itself, but the information contained within it. With a slightly complex process, it was even possible to appraise objects.
The catalog specs match what I was told.
It was a stone that carried the ability to regenerate inorganic matter and generate mana. Compared to ordinary mana stones formed by concentrated natural mana, it was certainly alien. Still, since it had been created by a god—even an evil one—it fell within an acceptable range.
Its name… Black Shadow Crystal.
After I’d gone so far as to give it a proper name, a helpless chuckle escaped me. In any case, the most critical part was fine. Just as the three of them had guaranteed, there was not the slightest trace of the evil god’s interference within the Black Shadow Crystal.
That didn’t mean it was completely untouched, however. The maker’s emotions had been engraved into it. In other words, flavor text.
Ruin will come to you.
Therefore, climb faster and higher toward your fated destruction.
Only then will your fall be a sight worth beholding, wouldn’t you agree?
That was all. I checked whether the crystal could be used to observe me, but no such function existed. The evil god had foreseen my ruin and simply didn’t care whether his observation played any part in it. My destruction alone seemed to be enough to satisfy him.
Truly the sentiment of a god.
At any rate, it was confirmed that the object was safe. Only one question remained: whether I would use it as the evil god mocked—or perhaps hoped—and draw closer to some unknown ruin, or simply discard it.
…There’s nothing to think about.
“I examined it myself. There are no particular abnormalities.”
“Is that so? That’s good to hear. So what will you do?”
“I’ll use it. Even if I didn’t, I was already wondering how to maintain the thing.”
As long as Diana refused to give up, there would be no end for us. If this choice proved wrong, we could simply avoid it next time. He must have left me with the ability I needed most for exactly that reason. In that case, I might as well make full use of it.
“Well, it is no ordinary object.”
“I understand. This is the first time I’ve seen a weapon so enormous and complex.”
“……If it is Brother’s decision, I will accept it.”
Everyone looked somewhat reluctant, yet they respected my choice.
“Ugh…”
Once the final verification was complete, exhaustion buckled my knees.
“Are you all right?”
“Ah, yeah.”
Fortunately Diana, who had been standing beside me, caught me before I could fall. Somehow it feels like our positions have reversed…? Still, the complex male heart that liked her was stirred by the fact that the woman I loved was holding me.
“My, I’ve kept a tired man far too long.”
“Sorry about that. Still, it was urgent, so I ask for your understanding.”
“Not at all. Since it concerns the evil god, it’s only natural.”
Though they said so, they had no intention of keeping me on my feet any longer. Sure enough, the high priest handed me a key.
“We will handle the remaining cleanup. This is the key to the annex right next door, so please use it.”
“No, it’s fine. I can just find an inn.”
“There’s no need to decline. It was prepared from the beginning for pilgrims.”
The high priest pressed the key into my hand. Meister waved his own hands and added,
“Leave the other pair here as well. I’ll maintain them together. I’ll adjust the mana stone so it can be mounted more harmoniously.”
“…Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“Leave it to me.”
As we were about to leave after wrapping things up, the high priest bowed deeply.
“The work you two have done surpasses a simple pilgrimage. It is a sacred journey, a true act of pioneering. I truly thank you for your devotion.”
“Indeed, I’m grateful as well.”
“I also thank you on behalf of the Magic Tower.”
It was a rewarding show of gratitude.
Thud.
“I had way too much going on today. I’m seriously exhausted.”
The moment I saw the bed I collapsed onto it. The day really had been endlessly long.
…I can’t sleep.
Fatigue crashed over me the instant I lay down, yet my eyes remained clear.
Predestined ruin…
If only my thoughts had been some serious contemplation about the evil god’s whisper…
“Oh my, are you trying to sleep right away?”
“…Why aren’t you using a different room?”
“Hehe. Who knows?”
It was because I didn’t possess the shallow affection that would let me fall asleep when the girl I liked had entered the same room. Does she have something to say? Given how she had acted until now, I assumed she had come because she needed something. Even in this exhausting situation, the same would be true for her; as a regressor, it had to be something absolutely necessary.
With that resolve, I looked at Diana.
“Eight!”
She leaped onto my bed and threw herself into my arms.
“Uh…”
“………”
The detection ability I had strengthened through training did not overlook the person now held against me. Apple scent. The woman’s body fragrance I had been consciously blocking flooded my senses. What emanated from Diana was a soft yet mysteriously sweet apple fragrance.
“Suu…”
“Huu…”
Even without audible breath, I could tell—our breaths were tangling together. I didn’t need to strain my ears to hear the frantic beating; her heartbeat transmitted clearly from the chest pressed against mine.
“………”
Diana said nothing. She simply gazed at me in silence. Sometimes as if beholding a masterpiece, sometimes as if looking at family, sometimes as if staring at a lover, and sometimes… That gaze stirred faint excitement, palpitations, and complicated emotions within me.
“What do you…”
Hiding those feelings when she was this close was simply impossible.
“…think of me?”
“…………”
“You must have grown quite used to it during all those regressions.”
It was an inevitable question if you loved a regressor. Whether the Helio she appeared to love was the same as me, the instinctive fear that she knew me while I did not know her, and whether it was possible to love again someone you had already loved once—all of it became an object of doubt. Because I could not know her true heart.
“…That’s true.”
Diana looked at me with languid eyes. This was probably not the first time she had been asked.
“For a regressor to date someone is the same as dating a person who will eventually lose all their memories. They leave me behind, and everyone forgets. No matter how many memories and experiences we accumulate, all of it vanishes.”
Therefore this answer could be doubted endlessly if one wished. Yet I accepted it with sincerity.
“That is why our family trains to see the essence.”
“Essence? Like the soul?”
“No, not something so material.”
As someone listening, I could sense that every word she spoke was genuine.
“The direction of that person which does not change no matter how many regressions, how many repetitions, even if it is our first meeting.”
Languidly, as if in a dream, yet filled with passion and sincerity.
“The person who is most dangerous to my heart, the one I cannot help but fall for again even after seeing them dozens, hundreds, thousands of times.”
She looked at me as she spoke.
“And you have already enchanted me once more.”
With a faint smile, she rested her head against my chest again.
“Wait, hold on…”
“Suu……”
After the brief surprise at the contact, steady breathing soon followed.
“She fell asleep…”
Of all moments. The thought rose, but when I considered it, she had pushed herself just as hard as I had. If I felt languid, she must have felt the same. So she had simply chosen the place where she could sleep best.
…If this is an act, I suppose I’ll just let myself be fooled.
Once I decided to believe, I had to keep believing. I gently stroked Diana’s hair where it lay in my arms, arranging it, then held her close. She was warm and smelled wonderful.
“Sleep well.”
“……”
When I woke, the space within my arms had grown cold. There was no trace of her on the bed either. So she only came for a moment because she was tired.
I let out a small sigh of disappointment—right as a voice spoke.
“Who are you looking for?”
“Woah!”
Startled by the sudden voice, I turned to see Diana sitting in a chair, smiling brightly at me.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Yeah, I feel a lot better after sleeping.”
“That makes sense. You slept for two full days, after all.”
“Two days?”
The unexpected number drew a wry laugh from me. No wonder I felt so refreshed yet strangely stiff. No wonder she wasn’t in my arms.
As I tried to rise with some effort, Diana spoke.
“Oh, and though I don’t need to say it, the person I like has only ever been one from the very beginning until now.”
“Huh?”
“I’m going out to eat, so get ready quickly!”
Before I could ask anything or catch her full reaction, Diana darted out of the room. Yet in that brief moment, I thought I glimpsed her face faintly flushed red.
“Well, I guess it isn’t one-sided love.”
That was quite welcome news. The mood had been so good, and yet…
“Oh my, is your body all right?”
“………………”
The moment we encountered the Saintess on the street, she displayed a subtly displeased expression.